Once again, following on from our mystery Lent Knitalong (or in preparation for the next mystery Lent Knitalong?), we will be hosting a (smaller!) mystery Advent Knitalong.

Starting knitting on 1st December and leading up to Christmas, participants will be invited to knit a large table mat and use the accompanying reflections.

You can download our Welcome Information (or the Large Print Welcome Information) which has all the information you need to prepare for the Advent Knitalong: yarn and needle information, a swatch pattern you can use as a warm-up and to test your gauge and details of how to sign up to receive the pattern (if you are not on our mailing list already).

The whole pattern for the table mat, as well as the accompanying reflections will be released in one single document on Monday 27th November via email and on the Vic Knitalongs Facebook Group. There will be a suggested schedule of which rows to knit each day for those who’d like to knit along each day and finish on Christmas Eve, but of course knitters can work at their own pace (more experienced/quicker knitters/those with more time might like to knit more than one to give as Christmas presents).

We look forward to many of you joining us for another devotional mystery knitalong!

A great time was had by all at our October 2023 Come and Sing Haydn’s Creation event. Many thanks to all who were involved from singers, musicians, behind the scenes organisers and front of house and refreshments team to Lyn, our conductor.

We recorded the event and are making videos of it available via our YouTube channel. So far, the first six movements are available, but the others will be added over time, too. Many thanks to our tech team for making this possible.

On Saturday 30 September 2023 and Saturday 14 October 2023 we will be hosing an exhibition of Sri Lankan Children’s Art. This amazing vibrant and colourful artwork has been produced by children attending a project in Sri Lanka and is being sold to raise money for the charity. Refreshments will be provided both mornings. More details below:

On Saturday 14 October and Sunday 15 Vic is hosting 8 artists as part of the trail. They are a diverse group working with in different artistic media. We are eagerly anticipating seeing all the different work and offering hospitality to visitors who come to experience the trail.

Opening hours

Saturday 14 October: 10am to 5pm

Sunday 15 October: 12 noon to 5 pm

More information about the Arts Trial on the West Bristol Arts Trail 2023 website.

Our Taizé-style services are based on the Christian worship practised by the ecumenical Taizé community in France (www.taize.fr). This is characterised by the repetitive singing of simple harmonised tunes (or chants), often in various languages, interspersed with readings, prayers and periods of silence.

At Vic we have a music practice half an hour before the service starts, so if you arrive early do feel free to join in if you would like to – and don’t be concerned that you are late. There is usually a short pause after the practice followed by a short welcome and introduction to start off the service.

We provide order of service handouts (large print copies are usually available for those who need them) which also include all the words to the chants and sometimes a Psalm which we may say together. An example order of service is provided below.

If you are able to read music, then you can find the music to the chants in the orange booklets:

The words of the chants, have been written in a variety of languages and we often sing chants in other languages, such as French, German or Latin. The booklet provides translations into a variety of languages including English. A little musical note symbol indicates that the translation can also be sung to the tune. Please feel free to sing the chants in the original language, in English or in another language – just as you wish.

The chants are repeated numerous times to help quieten the mind and enable reflection. Our conductor, Lyn, will give a bit of a lead and towards the end of the last repetition the musicians will slow down to indicate that this is the end. Please feel free to join in with the singing or drop out at any point.

Part way through the service there is usually a 10 minute period of silence. During this time you may wish to pray, to meditate or to reflect on the Bible reading. There is no right or wrong – this is simply a quiet time for you to spend in God’s presence as you find helpful. The first time this can seem a little daunting, but after a few services, you will hopefully find yourself becoming more comfortable with the silences.

At the front we have a candle stand where you can light a candle at any point during the chants. We tend to request that candles are not lit during the silence, as this can be distracting for others.

When we are invited to say the Lord’s Prayer together in our mother tongue people may be speaking a in number of different languages – to share both our diversity and our unity.

There are usually a couple of stewards on duty – do ask if you are unsure about anything.

Example Order of Service

Welcome
Chant 10  Laudate Dominum, laudate Dominum,
Omnes gentes, alleluia! (x2)
(Sing, praise and bless the Lord.
Sing, praise and bless the Lord.
Peoples! Nations! Alleluia!)
Chant 118  In resurrectione tua, Christe, cœli et terra laetentur. (x2)
(Let heaven and earth rejoice in your resurrection, O Christ.)
Prayer
Psalm 30 begun and interspersed with:
Chant 74  Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
¹          I will exalt you, Lord,
for you lifted me out of the depths
and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
²          Lord my God, I called to you for help,
and you healed me.
³          You, Lord, brought me up from the realm of the dead;
you spared me from going down to the pit.
       Alleluia, alleluia…
⁴          Sing the praises of the Lord, you his faithful people;
praise his holy name.
⁵          For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may stay for the night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning.
       Alleluia, alleluia…
⁶          When I felt secure, I said, “I will never be shaken.”
⁷          Lord, when you favored me,
you made my royal mountain stand firm;
but when you hid your face, I was dismayed.
       Alleluia, alleluia…
⁸          To you, Lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy:
⁹          “What is gained if I am silenced, if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness?
¹⁰        Hear, Lord, and be merciful to me; Lord, be my help.”
       Alleluia, alleluia…
¹¹        You turned my wailing into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
¹²        that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent.
Lord my God, I will praise you forever.
       Alleluia, alleluia…
Chant 7 Notre âme attend le Seigneur.
En lui la joie de notre cœur. O—, O—.
(Our soul is waiting for God.
Our hearts find joy– in the Lord. O—, O—.)
Reading 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
Silence  Ten minutes
Chant 40  O— Surrexit Christus, alleluia!
O— Cantate Domino, alleluia!
(The Lord is risen alleluia.
Sing out and praise the Lord, alleluia.
Chant 106  See, I am near, says the Lord.
See, I make all things new. O—, O—.
Prayers of Intercession begun and interspersed with:
Chant 79  Kyrie, Kyrie eleison. Kyrie, Kyrie eleison.
(Lord, have compassion.)
Lord’s Prayer in own mother tongue
Chant 5  Bless the Lord, my soul, and bless God’s holy name.
Bless the Lord, my soul, who leads me into life.
Chant 33  Nunc dimits servus tuum Domine,
secundum vergum tuum in pace.
(Let your ser-vant now— go in peace, O— Lord,
now go in peace ac—cord-ing to your word.—)
Blessing

The Ecclesiastical Exemption (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (England) Order 2010

Victoria Methodist Church Whiteladies Road Bristol

The managing trustees of the above building wish to undertake the
following work to the chapel, which is listed as being of special
architectural or historic interest and/or is in a conservation area.

PROPOSED WORKS
new handrail and repairs to stone steps

If you wish to make any comment or objection to these proposals you should write within 28 days to:

The Conservation office
Central Buildings
Oldham Street
Manchester
M1 1JQ

Email conservation@methodistchurch.org.uk

28 May 2023

Victoria Methodist Church was delighted to host the wedding of Holly Lerchundi Willis and Pippa Haggitt on Saturday October 8th. It was the first wedding for a same-sex couple to have taken place in the Church, and indeed within the wider Bristol and South Gloucestershire Methodist Circuit.

“It means a huge amount to us that we are able to get married before God,” the couple said, “and that Victoria Methodist has welcomed us with open arms. We are so grateful for the support and positivity we’ve received. It’s a double celebration for us and the church! Being Christians and part of the LGBT community, it was really important to us to get married in a church amongst a community where we felt we belonged.”

Church Minister, Rev Richard Sharples, commented: “I have waited 30 years for this day, and feel privileged and delighted to have been able to enable Pippa and Holly to commit themselves to one another in a Methodist Church. The Methodist people of the UK continue on our pilgrimage of faith, through which we journey together despite not always agreeing with one another.”

In June 2021, the Methodist Conference (the Church’s governing body) gave local Churches permission to register for same-sex weddings as well as mixed-sex weddings. Of the approximately 40 Churches in this local Circuit, a handful have now chosen to do so. The couple added: “We hope that this is the beginning of many more same sex marriages to be conducted at Victoria and that it inspires other churches to also offer same sex weddings.”

Although we have been back in the church for morning services for some time now, it wasn’t until the start of September the we have got back into a new routine for evenings. Every last Sunday in the month we are now holding a Taizé style service at 6.30pm. Wonderful to be singing and listening to the beautiful chants again and spending time in silence alongside prayers and readings and the chance to light a candle.